[Abigail Langi performing her spoken word piece and being backed up by her aunty Neti Taumoepeau (676) and her mom Lavinia Taumoepeau. Special thanks to Maikolo Ika for the awesome picture!]

In the past few weeks I have been working with my niece Abigail Langi on a spoken word piece that she composed to perform at the Island Groove Concert! I wasn't able to get a video recording of her performance but it was absolutely amazing!!!

I am posting below her poem and her introduction of the H.Y.P.E. Movement which was infused with Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" with a little twist in the lyrics to fit her experiences and her poetry. She is only 12 years old, but she can hold it down with some of the very best poets out there! Much love to the PALE Foundation for creating the platform for her to perform!

Introduction of the H.Y.P.E. MovementPacific Islanders in school districts all over the United States represent one of the smallest student populations but are among the highest dropout rates. Since the year 2000 the incarceration rates of Pacific Islander young men have tripled, our suicide rates have doubled, drug use has become common place and the death rates due to gang violence have increased by 110%. The HYPE Movement, which stands for Helping Youth Pursue Emancipation is our way of breaking free from these negative trends and uniting our youth and raising our voices to make a positive change! I dedicate this poem to every young Pacific Islander in the struggle!

[singing]I’m gonna make a changeFor once in my lifeIt's gonna feel real goodIt’s gonna make a differenceGonna make it right

As I look at my fathers’s eyes My mother’s fateful criesTheir pain is blowin’ my mindI see my friends in the streetWithout a heart to beat Who am I to be blindPretending not to see their needs

A fatherless Tongan child Alone and suffering trialsWith broken hearts and dreams There’s more to life than This I know And so it’s time to let it go That's why I want you to know

[Abby's spoken word]I want you to know about theScreams of my mother cryingVoices of my father yellingMe sitting in a cornerBeing put through this tortureMany nights I criedWaking-up with blood shot eyesThoughts would race through my headAs I lay silently in bedI love them both so muchThat it hurts to even thinkOr imagineThe sadness of separationCaused by acts and thoughts of desperationI want to make things better for me and youBut I am just a child—what am I to do?

My friends tell me “not to worry… it’s all good”As they continue to skip school and do drugs To prove they are “down for their hood”But I can’t help but see how there is no gainIn their choices that only bring more and more painI want to stand up and make a changeBut another day goes by I suffer alone in silenceAs I wonder whyIt’s so hard for us to tryTo break free from all the negativity

Just because the color of our skinDoesn't mean that we shouldn't winJust because our cousins are locked upDoesn’t mean that we have to give upJust because we might have doubtsDoesn’t mean we aren’t brown and proud Just because we were born and raised on the WestsideDoesn’t mean that we don’t have dreams insideI know it’s hard sometimes,Without a doubtBut we are strong and fierce We know what we’re aboutMou'i manatu ki ho tupu'angaMeans our past is our legacyBut we, we create our own destinyIf you dream it You can achieve itIf you believe itYou can be itLife is full of the good and badThe happy and sadWe don’t win by counting smiles and frownsWe win because we stand up Every time we fall downIf you hear my voice Then you know you have to make a choiceLive the H.Y.P.E.Let go of the fear and painLive the H.Y.P.E.We have so much more to gainLive the H.Y.P.E.Only we can make this changeI’m getting upI’m taking a standFor once in my lifeI’m livin’ the H.Y.P.E.!

[Singing]As I look at my fathers’s eyes My mother’s fateful criesTheir pain is blowin’ my mindI see my friends in the streetWithout a heart to beat Who am I to be blindPretending not to see their needs

A fatherless Tongan child Alone and suffering trialsWith broken hearts and dreams There’s more to life than This I know And so it’s time to let it go That's why I want you to know

I'm starting with the man in the mirrorI'm asking him to change his waysAnd no message could have been any clearerIf you wanna make the world a better placeTake a look at yourself and then make that change

I'm starting with the man in the mirrorI'm asking him to change his waysAnd no message could have been any clearerIf you wanna make the world a better placeTake a look at yourself and then make that change

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About Me

'Anapesi Ka'ili

A very wise Tongan elder once said "human reality is human creation, if we fail to create our own reality someone else will do it for us" ('epeli hau'ofa). This blog is my attempt at speaking of and creating my own reality! Please feel free to speak your truth just don't hate on mine... However, if you are going to be a hater, please spell check your comments before posting because the only thing worse than a hater is a hater who can't spell...